{"id":12896,"date":"2024-07-23T11:23:36","date_gmt":"2024-07-23T15:23:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/?p=12896"},"modified":"2024-08-01T19:41:19","modified_gmt":"2024-08-01T23:41:19","slug":"azhelle-wades-own-toy-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/2024\/07\/23\/azhelle-wades-own-toy-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Azhelle Wade\u2019s Own “Toy Story”"},"content":{"rendered":"

Podcaster, educator and consultant Azhelle Wade, (BFA, Toy Design \u201910), sees potential toys and potential six-figure salaries everywhere in the booming toy-and-games industry.\u00a0 She says she has FIT to thank.<\/p>\n

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Azhelle Wade with toys she designed for Toys “R” Us<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many others say she should be thanked as well. She\u2019s founder and CEO of The Toy Coach, helping toy industry newbies and companies thrive. She\u2019s also on the board of ASTRA, the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Toy Coach\u2019s weekly podcast, \u201cMaking It In The Toy Industry<\/a>\u201d has over 127,000 downloads since its launch in 2020.\u00a0 It covers everything from unlocking creativity and finding manufacturing solutions to negotiating deals and mastering sales techniques.<\/p>\n

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Azhelle Wade on the History Channel’s “The Toys That Built America” set<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Podcast listeners have enjoyed hearing from industry heavyweights like Tanya Thompson, Senior Inventor Relations Manager at Hasbro, who shared insider tips on pitching to major toy companies.<\/p>\n

Dr. Lisa Williams, founder of Fresh Dolls<\/a> with 100+ skin tones and patented Hair Loc technology, and Jeremy Padawer, Chief Brand Officer at Jazwares<\/a>, who discussed the importance of resilience in the industry, have been podcast guests.<\/p>\n

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Fresh Legacy Dolls by Dr. Lisa Williams, creator of The Fresh Dolls. “Dr. Lisa” was a guest on the podcast \u201cMaking It in The Toy Industry.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The podcast also features inventors like Dan Klitsner, creator of Bop It!, who explained how to recognize when an idea is ready for pitching, as well as business experts like Amy Porterfield, who shares strategies for building a multi-million dollar enterprise.<\/p>\n

\n

“My time at FIT was this perfect mix of structured learning and following my own interests. It wasn’t always easy, but it set me up for a career I absolutely love.” – Azhelle Wade, Toy Design ’10<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\"\"
Bop It! toy invented and licensed by Dan Klitsner who was a guest on the podcast \u201cMaking It In The Toy Industry\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A core offering, Toy Creators Academy, is a comprehensive course that guides aspiring toy creators through the process of bringing their ideas to life.<\/p>\n

FIT alums might enjoy the networking aspect. \u201cWe have a vibrant community of toy creators, and host an annual pitch event where our graduates can present their ideas to publishers, distributors, and manufacturers,\u201d says Wade.<\/p>\n

IN THE BEGINNING<\/p>\n

\u201cI never set out to be a toy designer,\u201d said Wade who grew up on Long Island. \u201cIt all started when I was working as an arts and crafts counselor at summer camp. I loved art in high school, so this job was perfect for me\u2026 and getting paid to do art with kids? Sign me up!\u201d<\/p>\n

After high school, Wade enrolled in 2006 in the Spatial Experience Design<\/a> program. In all her projects, she \u201ckept gravitating toward stuff for kids. I’d design exhibits about color theory for children or explore concepts like light refraction through bubbles,” she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI even turned one exhibit space into a giant Twister display! I just loved to game-ify things and integrate play, exploration, and answering questions into every project I could.\u201d<\/p>\n

Professor Larry Langham noticed and said, \u201cYou know, Azhelle, there’s a Toy Design major here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wade said she was \u201cfloored.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToy Design? That’s a real thing? I couldn’t believe it!\u201d<\/p>\n

Judy Ellis, then Toy Design department chair, let Wade enroll in an intro course.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought this was it! This was my in,\u201d said Wade. \u201cLet me tell you, though, my first toy design was hilariously bad; it was a squared-off, horrific brownie plush named Chip. He was so scary! I’m still looking for that sketch because I need to show the world just how bad it was.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Azhelle Wade with her Totally Me 670-piece Scrapbooking Kit<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite that disaster, \u201cthe Toy Design department supported me and could see that I understood play and play patterns, even if my illustration skills weren’t quite there yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wade said the courses that shaped her the most were the drafting and concept sketching classes. \u201cThey were challenging, but they prepared me for the real world in ways I couldn’t have imagined.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really got into 3D design too. At the time, not many people saw the value in it, but I was obsessed. I spent hours teaching myself 3D modeling on top of my regular coursework.\u201d She graduated magna cum laude.<\/p>\n

\"\"
The Toy Coach Showcase at the ASTRA Marketplace and Academy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cLooking back, my time at FIT was this perfect mix of structured learning and following my own interests. It wasn’t always easy, but it set me up for a career I absolutely love. Who knew that summer camp job and my obsession with making everything playful would lead me here?<\/p>\n

Here are selected podcasts featuring FIT alums and faculty:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Episode #50: Becoming A Children’s Book Illustrator and Author with Yesenia Moises<\/a>. <\/strong>Episode focuses on non-linear paths. Toy Design alum Yesenia\u2019s career takes an unexpected turn toward children’s book illustration,<\/li>\n
  2. Episode #95: Tips For Finding The Great Toy Or Game Concepts Within You.<\/strong><\/a> Toy Design alum Christian Castro draws parallels to stand-up comedians deriving humor from everyday situations, an approach that can be applied to toy and game design.<\/li>\n
  3. Episode #92: Breaking Through Barriers in Children\u2019s Book Publishing.<\/strong><\/a> When faced with obstacles in his publishing career, the Illustration alum Charles George Esperanza turned to teaching art. It helped sustain him and provided inspiration for his book “Boogie Boogie Y\u2019all.”<\/li>\n
  4. Episode #78: How To Be A Toy Designer<\/strong><\/a>. In this episode Azhelle Wade herself discusses preparing for interviews; transitioning into the toy industry, and building a strong portfolio.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Catch Azhelle Wade\u2019s The Toy Coach podcast, \u201cMaking It In The Toy Industry.<\/a> Learn about Wade’s toy design services at The Toy Coach<\/a>, and follow her on IG @thetoycoach<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

    To learn about the School of Art and Design\u2019s Toy Design BFA major, visit Toy Design at FIT.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

    Photos courtesy of Dr. Lisa Williams, Dan Klitsner. and Azhelle Wade.<\/p>\n

    Check out our last Toy Design post: Toy Design\u2019s Susan Adamo Baumbach on Whimsy, Twists and Tech.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Podcaster, educator and consultant Azhelle Wade, (BFA, Toy Design \u201910), sees potential toys and potential six-figure salaries everywhere in the booming toy-and-games industry.\u00a0 She says she has FIT to thank. Many others say she should be thanked as well. She\u2019s founder and CEO of The Toy Coach, helping toy industry newbies and companies thrive. She\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":285,"featured_media":12900,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[32004],"tags":[70792,70784,70786,70788,70787,70790,70789,70791,45902,38277,70785,70783],"class_list":["post-12896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-school-of-art-and-design","tag-american-specialty-toy-retailing-association","tag-astra","tag-azhelle-wade","tag-bop-it","tag-dan-klitsner","tag-dr-lisa","tag-fresh-dolls","tag-hasbro","tag-judy-ellis","tag-larry-langham","tag-the-toy-coach","tag-toys-r-us"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/files\/2024\/07\/AzhelleWade_lead1-2.jpg?fit=1379%2C1501&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p13xjz-3m0","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/285"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12896\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.fitnyc.edu\/artanddesign\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}